Why Is Google Being Accused of Gender Wage Discrimination? By Dan Atkerson on April 19, 2017

The Department of Labor (DoL) has filed a lawsuit against Google to force it to turn over documents on employee compensation. Statistics gathered by the DoL claim Google’s gender wage discrimination issues are systemic. Google claims the allegations are false, and has urged the DoL to release the statistics and its methodology for gathering its numbers.

Google has contracts with the federal government. This means the DoL can audit Google’s workforce records to ensure compliance with federal laws. According to the DoL, Google has not fully complied with requests to turn over documents.

The DoL has sued other companies in the tech industry over similar allegations. In January, the DoL sued Oracle, claiming the company favored paying white men more than women and other races.

This is not the first time the tech industry has been accused of paying women less. Earlier this year, data analytics company Comparably released pay data on the tech industry. According to the Comparably, the pay gap between men and women under 25 in the tech industry is 29 percent. The employment review website Glassdoor released its own numbers on the tech industry pay gap. According to Glassdoor, female programmers earn 30 percent less than men in the same occupation.

If these numbers are accurate, it suggests the pay gap in the tech industry is worse than the national average. DoL statistics show women’s earnings are 83 percent of men’s, but the gap can vary depending on the occupation.

How Are Women Protected from Gender Wage Discrimination?

Paying women less than men for equal work is a form of gender discrimination. Women have protection from unequal pay under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Equal Pay Act and the Texas Labor Code. If you have been harmed by gender wage discrimination at your workplace, you may be able to file a claim against your employer.

Texas employment law attorney Dan A. Atkerson can help victims of workplace discrimination discover if they have legal options against their employers.